On April 19, the Reds opened the 1938 season with a loss to the
Chicago Cubs by a score of 8–7 in front of 34,148 fans at
Crosley Field.
Ernie Lombardi went 3-for-3 for the Reds, while
Billy Myers went 3-for-4, while driving in three runs. The Reds purchased pitcher
Jim Weaver from the
St. Louis Browns on April 25. Weaver had a 0–1 record with an ERA of 9.00 in one game with the Browns. In 1935 with the
Pittsburgh Pirates, Weaver finished tied for the National League lead with four shutouts. Following a 3–8 start of the season in their first 11 games, Cincinnati would win six of their next seven games, bringing their record to .500 at 9–9 through 18 games. The Reds would stay hot throughout the month of May, as the club finished the month with a record of 15–9, which brought their overall win-loss record to 19–17 heading into June, as the club sat in fourth place in the National League. On June 6, the Reds acquired outfielder
Wally Berger from the
New York Giants in exchange for infielder
Alex Kampouris. Berger struggled with the Giants in 1938, hitting only .188 with four RBI in 16 games. Earlier in his career, Berger was one of the top sluggers in the National League. In 1930, he set the record for most home runs by a rookie with 38 when he played for the
Boston Braves. In the
1933 season, Berger finished in third place in National League MVP voting after he hit .313 with 27 home runs and 106 RBI in 137 games with the Braves. In
1935, Berger led the National League with 34 home runs and 130 RBI.
Johnny Vander Meer became the only pitcher in major league history to pitch two consecutive
no-hitters in 1938. On June 11, 1938, he no-hit the
Boston Bees at
Crosley Field. Four nights later, in the first night game played at
Ebbets Field, he no-hit the
Brooklyn Dodgers. One of two balls that survives from this historic game is in the
Seth Swirsky collection. After his double no-hit achievement, Reds' management wanted Vander Meer to change his uniform number to "00." He politely refused. On June 13, the Reds were involved in a blockbuster trade, as the team acquired pitcher
Bucky Walters from the
Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for catcher
Spud Davis, pitcher
Al Hollingsworth and $50,000. Walters struggled to begin the 1938 season with the Phillies, posting a record of 4–8 with a 5.23 ERA in 12 starts, pitching 82.2 innings and nine complete games. Cincinnati had a very solid record of 15–10 in the month of June, bringing their overall win-loss record to 35–27 by the end of the month, sitting in a second place tie with the
Pittsburgh Pirates, only four games behind the pennant leading
New York Giants. The Reds started off the month of July with a four-game losing streak, which dropped the team into fourth place in the National League and eight games behind the Giants. Cincinnati rebounded from this streak, winning their next seven games, however, the streaky Reds then dropped four games in a row following their winning streak. Overall, Cincinnati had a 15–15 record during the month, as their overall record was 50–42 by the end of July, as they were in fourth place, 8.5 games out of first. Cincinnati put together a record of 18–14 during the month of August, bumping the club from fourth place into second by the end of the month with an overall record of 68–56, however, the Reds sat 6.5 games behind the pennant leading
Pittsburgh Pirates. The Reds were never able to catch New York for first place, as the team put together a record of 14–12 in their remaining 26 games, dropping the Reds to fourth place in the National League, as Cincinnati finished six games behind the pennant winning
Chicago Cubs. Offensively, outfield
Ival Goodman led the club, as he hit .292 with a team leading 30 home runs, and drove in 92 runners in 145 games. Catcher
Ernie Lombardi led Cincinnati with a .342 batting average, while he hit 19 home runs and had 95 RBI in 129 games. First baseman
Frank McCormick led the Reds with 109 RBI, as he hit .327 and had five home runs in 151 games played. Outfielder
Wally Berger, who the Reds acquired in a trade during the season, hit .306 with 16 home runs and 56 RBI in 99 games with the Reds. The Reds pitching staff was anchored by
Paul Derringer, as he led the club with a 21–14 record and a 2.93 ERA in 41 games. Derringer led Cincinnati with 26 complete games, four shutouts, 307 innings pitched, and struck out 132 batters.
Johnny Vander Meer had an unforgettable season, throwing back-to-back no-hitters. He posted a record of 15–10 with a 3.12 ERA in 32 games.
Bucky Walters posted a record of 11–6 and an ERA of 3.69 in 168.1 innings pitched following his trade to Cincinnati during the season. The Reds 82–68 record in 1938 was a 26 win improvement over the
1937 season, in which the club finished in last place with a 56–98 record. The 1938 season was the first time Cincinnati finished over .500 since the
1928 season, when the club finished 78–74. The Reds 82 victories was their highest total since the
1926 season, when the Reds finished 87–67. Cincinnati set a club record in attendance, as the team drew 706,756 fans, an improvement of 295,535 from 1937. The Reds previously record high for attendance was in 1926 as the club drew 672,987 fans.
Season standings Record vs. opponents Roster == Player stats ==